5 Tips for Choosing Your Price Monitoring Software

In the fast-paced world of e-commerce, staying ahead of your competitors' trends and movements is key to staying competitive. Competitive intelligence, as a strategic practice, requires appropriate tools to collect, analyze, and interpret relevant data. However, choosing the right tool can prove to be a challenge in itself. Here are five key tips to guide you in choosing your competitive intelligence and price intelligence  tool for e-commerce.

1. Define your specific needs

Before you start your search, it's important to clearly define your specific competitive intelligence needs. This step will help you narrow down your search and choose a tool that precisely meets your needs.

A. What objectives do you want to meet with this tool ?

• Increase your sales
• Better adjust your margins
• Identify products on which you can increase prices
• Perform automatic repricing
• Automatically monitor your competitors' prices and promotions
• Identify in real time which offers are becoming cheaper than yours
• Monitor your competitors' stock and stock-outs.
• Know who sells the same products as you on the Marketplaces  and who owns the Buy Box
• Identify market opportunities by spotting your competitors' new brands
• Have management and decision-making tools
• Target your Google Ads ads to the products where you rank best

B. What types of products do you want to track ?

• New products with EAN or Unique Reference codes
• New products without EAN codes or Unique Reference
• Products identical to yours
• Products similar to yours
• Second-hand or second-hand products
• Private labels
• Services (car rental, ski rental, travel agency, etc.)
• Product variations by colour, size for example
• Sales & Bundles , Bundles, Packs

C. What types of data do you want to collect ?

• Price
• Shipping costs
• Promotions
• Stock
• Catalog, brands, products
• Market Trends & Pricing Policy
• Marketing strategy
•  Product Ratings & Reviews
• Seller Ratings

D. What types of sites do you want to monitor ?

• Competing e-commerce sites
• Marketplaces to keep track of all sellers who sell the same products as you
• French or multi-country sites only

E. Who will use the tool and how?

• E-commerce Manager, Webmarketing Manager, Key Account Manager, Marketing Director, Sales Director, Executive...
• Daily and in-depth online consultation (project referent)
• Viewing the Chrome extension only
• Viewing email alerts and exports only
• Consultation of BI analysis for all countries

F. How will the tool interface with your existing systems ?

• Do you need to retrieve data via an API to leverage it in your system?
• What software/systems (e-commerce site/ERP/PIM) does the tool need to interface with?

G. What features are a  must-have for your business?

• Data brute
• Custom BI analysis
• Configurable e-mail alerts
• Dynamic Pricing or automatic Repricing tool that will offer you the best prices for your products based on your margin and your competitors' prices
•  Programmable Data Exports
• Chrome extension gives you access to competitors' prices while browsing your merchant site
• Price and stock history
• Tailored features  for your business

To help you define your needs and think of all the useful features:
Discover the benefits of Price Observatory for Retailers
Check out the Features for Retailers brochure

2. Assess the reliability and accuracy of the Data

Make sure that the tool you are considering offers comprehensive coverage of data relevant to your industry. Check the frequency of data updates (daily), the reliability of the data, and the accuracy of the information provided

A. Reliability of the data

Above all, a competitive intelligence tool must provide reliable, easily verifiable and verified data. For this, the accuracy of the algorithms is essential. Various control phases must also be carried out to ensure the validity of the data collected. Human control is also essential for all collated data that is not matched by EAN code or unique reference.

B. Frequency of surveys

The tool must also be able to collect daily or even real-time data. Make sure that the tool provides daily price readings and that you can refresh the data at any time in 1 click.

C. Accuracy of the data

Make sure the data is accurate. In particular, check that:

•  postage and delivery costs are collected
• The dates of price changes are specified
• Stocks  are well harvested
• Promotions  and strikethrough prices are returned
• the packaging is specified
• Bundles  and bundles are well differentiated
•  product combinations can be processed separately
• Specific product attributes can be searched and displayed

D. Test the tool in real-world conditions

The best way to ensure the reliability and quality of the data and free test

The Price Observatory software offers free 1-day tests in real-world conditions. Contact us for more information

3. Investigate how to access data

Make sure the tool offers a variety of convenient ways to read and use data :

• A user-friendly and customizable  interface
• An automatic repricing feature  that recalculates new prices based on rules you set and automatically sends them to your merchant site
• Advanced filtering capabilities to help you get the relevant data efficiently.
• Accurate  and varied analysis to make informed decisions
• An API to retrieve data from your system
• A chrome extension to have access to the main data when browsing your merchant site
• Configurable programmable  email alerts and  exports

4. Consider Scalability and Integration

Your business may evolve over time, and your competitive intelligence needs may also change.

Choose a tool that is scalable and able to scale as your business grows.

Is the software publisher open to specific development and to adapt to the needs of its customers or is it more in a mass logic?

Additionally, make sure the tool can easily integrate with other tools and platforms you already use, such as your inventory management system or e-commerce platform.

5. Evaluate customer support and value for money

Finally, don't underestimate the importance of customer support and value for money.

Opt for a provider that offers responsive and knowledgeable customer support to help you with any issues or questions.

Additionally, carefully evaluate the cost of the tool in relation to its features and the value it brings to your business. A competitive intelligence tool can be a valuable investment, but it needs to offer value for money to be profitable in the long run.

In conclusion

In conclusion, choosing the right e-commerce competitive intelligence tool is essential to stay competitive in the market. By following these five key tips, you'll be able to select a tool that perfectly meets your needs and helps you make informed strategic decisions for your business.

For personalized advice on the pricing of your products, do not hesitate to contact our team of experts on our Price Observatory website. Contact us for a demo, a real-life test or information